


Hyde Rats Kelso Out

by springsteenicious



Category: That '70s Show
Genre: Cheating, Friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:35:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27435952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/springsteenicious/pseuds/springsteenicious
Summary: After Vanstock, Hyde can't shake the feeling that he has to tell Jackie. So, he rats Kelso out. His decision leads to an unlikely friendship with Jackie, one he finds he enjoys more than he should.
Relationships: Jackie Burkhart/Michael Kelso, Jackie Burkhart/Steven Hyde
Comments: 8
Kudos: 36





	Hyde Rats Kelso Out

After Vanstock, Hyde felt inexplicably guilty. He had spent the whole weekend setting traps for Kelso to get caught, but it hadn't worked. He had no reason to feel bad about lying to Jackie; he wasn't even lying to her. 

But she didn't deserve this. She could be annoying and loud, but she was a relatively good person. Hyde actually had fun with her at the prom. If she could make him enjoy dancing, she deserved to know her boyfriend was cheating on her. 

Clearly, setting traps was not enough to get Kelso caught. Hyde thought about what he'd told Donna, about being a rat. He decided he didn't care that much about being a rat. 

Next time Hyde caught Jackie alone, he would tell her. 

That wasn't for three days. Jackie, Fez and himself were in the basement, playing Monopoly. Jackie was crushing them both. Fez got mad, flipped the board and stormed out. Jackie laughed, but didn't make a move to leave. 

Once Hyde was sure Fez wouldn't come back, he turned to Jackie. 

"Listen, Jackie, I got something to tell ya…" Hyde said. He wasn't sure how to start this. 

"Do you have a crush on me? I'm dating Michael," Jackie said. 

"No, I don't have a crush on you, weirdo. But this is about Kelso. You probably won't believe me, 'cause it's me, but I swear I'm telling the truth." 

Jackie's eyebrows drew together. She leaned closer to him. "What is it?" 

Hyde stared at her for a moment, chewing the inside of his lip. He hated being the one to break this horrible news to her, but it had to be done. "For the past few weeks, Kelso has been cheating on you with Laurie." 

"What? No, you have to be lying," Jackie said. Tears were forming in her eyes. 

"I wish I was. Look, I wasn't going to tell you. I've just been laying traps for Kelso to get caught. Like at Vanstock, with the theme song and everything," Hyde said. 

"Oh my God… Why would you tell me now?" Jackie asked. 

"I don't want you to get hurt any more. I also don't want you to get an STD. Laurie sleeps around," Hyde said. 

"Okay… I'll have to find proof, but thank you for looking out for me. It means a lot," Jackie said. She started crying. "I just can't believe he cheated on me again." 

"Sadly, I believe it, but you don't deserve Kelso's shitty behavior," Hyde said. He got up and sat on the couch next to her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him. Why did she like hugging him so much? 

Donna entered the basement, pausing to stare at Jackie and Hyde. Hyde didn't blame her for being taken aback; usually when Jackie hugged him, he kept his arms away from her. This time, he was gently patting her back and hair. 

"What's going on?" Donna asked. 

"I told her about Kelso," Hyde said. 

Jackie pulled away from Hyde to look at Donna. "Is it true? Is Michael cheating on me with Eric's sister?"

Donna was silent for a few seconds, then said, "Yeah. I'm really sorry, Jackie." 

Jackie sobbed and went back to hugging Hyde. He held her gently. Donna gave him a look. He gave her a look back that said 'If you tell anyone about this I'll hurt you.' 

Kelso came down the stairs from the kitchen. "Guys, the weirdest thing just happened- Jackie, baby, why are you crying?" 

Jackie pulled away from Hyde's arms and looked up at Kelso. "Because you're cheating on me, you asshole!" 

"Aw, come on, you guys told her?" Kelso asked. "I mean, no, I'm not cheating on you with Laurie!" 

"I didn't even mention Laurie!" Jackie said. She sniffled. Hyde handed her the box of tissues from the end table. She blew her nose. "Michael, we are done." 

"But Jackie, I love you!" Kelso said, holding out his arms. "Look, I'll stop nailing Laurie if you'll keep me." 

"No, Michael! If you really loved me, you wouldn't cheat on me!" Jackie stood up. "If it wasn't for Hyde, I'd have no idea! You just would've kept hurting me! Don't call me, Michael. Don't show up at my house, either. I don't want to see or speak to you for a while." Jackie took a deep breath and walked to the door. 

Hyde stood up. "Jackie, let me give you a ride home." 

"Thank you, Hyde," Jackie said. 

"Hyde! What the hell, man?" Kelso said. 

"We'll talk about this later, all right?" Hyde said. Then he followed Jackie outside to her car. She handed him the keys and got in the passenger's side. Hyde got in the driver's seat and pulled out of the driveway. 

Jackie stared out the window silently as he drove to her house. After a few minutes, she turned to him. "Why did you decide to tell me? You've been friends with Michael forever and you claim to hate me." 

Hyde kept his eyes on the road. "Kelso's been my friend forever, but he does shitty things sometimes. He's gotta learn from them somehow. And you're a good person, you don't deserve Kelso's lies and cheating." 

Jackie patted his knee. "Thank you for telling me. That was really sweet of you." 

Hyde looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Yeah, just don't tell anyone else I'm sweet. You'll ruin my reputation." 

Jackie giggled. Then she sighed. "Now that I'm not with Michael anymore, I really have no reason to go to the basement, do I? Donna's not that close to me. Fez likes me, but we're not friends. Eric doesn't like me. You and I aren't friends, despite the amazing thing you just did for me." 

"If you still wanna come to the basement, no one's gonna stop you. And Donna wants you around. She was gonna tell you 'bout Kelso, but Forman stopped her," Hyde said.

"He shouldn't have stopped her," Jackie said. She sighed heavily. "I'll see you around. Thanks again, for today." She leaned over and kissed his cheek, then got out of the car. 

Now, Hyde just had to deal with Kelso.

**Author's Note:**

> written for my numbered draft game on Tumblr at springsteenicious! this is my first draft game fic that has multiple chapters!


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